Itinerary

1. Pondicherry Day Tour

   • Take a trip to Pondicherry, a charming, laid-back seaside town with a unique Franco-Tamil culture. See the city’s lovely architecture, and enjoy its delicious food, gentle sea breeze and laidback pace of life.
   • Stop At: Sri Aurobindo Ashram, Rue de la Marine, Pondicherry, India: We will begin with a visit to Aurobindo Ashram, the spiritual center of the city. Shri Aurobindo, a great seer, poet and prophet of the twentieth century, made Pondicherry his home from 1910 till his death in 1950. His vision and ideals continue to draw people from all over the world. (Duration: 45 minutes)
   • Stop At: Puducherry Tourism Development Corporation, Beach Road, Goubert Ave, opp. Old Court, White Town, Puducherry, 605001, India: We'll explore Pondicherry's fabulous French Quarter, with its clean and uncrowded streets, neatly painted houses, grand government buildings sombre memorials and thriving cultural institutions. We will also visit the Notre Dame church. (Duration: 45 minutes)
   • Stop At: Sri Aurobindo Handmade Paper, 50, Sardar Vallabhai Patel Salai, Kuruchikuppam, Puducherry, 605001, India: We visit a unique factory that makes handmade paper. Sri Aurobindo Paper Factory started 50 years ago and made 100% cotton rag pulp paper. In this visit, guests will experience how the paper is produced from cotton rags and then processed with silk screen printing and marbling techniques. (Duration: 45 minutes)
   • Stop At: Statue Of Gandhi, Goubert Avenue White Town, Pondicherry 605001 India: We will drive through the seaside Promenade for some great views and exciting structures - the Old Lighthouse, Nehru statue, Gandhi statue, Old Customs House, French War Memorial, and the ruins of La Mairie De Pondicherry. After that, we have lunch. (Duration: 45 minutes)
   • Stop At: Auroville Online Store, Aurosanjan Complex, Auroshilpam, Auroville, Bommayapalayam, Tamil Nadu 605101, India: We travel to Auroville, the radical concept of a global village where thousands of people from across the world have given up their nationalities and are living as global citizens. Auroville was conceived with the vision that, “There should be somewhere on earth, a place which no nation could claim as its own, where all human beings of goodwill who have a sincere aspiration could live freely as citizens of the world and obey one single authority, that of the supreme truth; a place of peace, concord and harmony…”. Guests will also see how its citizens practise a sustainable way of life. Matri Mandir is a giant dome for silent meditation, and guests can see it from outside on a day's visit. Note: permission for meditation inside has to be taken one day in person.